Abstract
In this chapter, and in the two following chapters, three Greek philosophical traditions are considered: Platonic, Aristotelian, and Archimedean. Plato’s doctrine held that material beings, perceptible by the senses, are only the shadows of the corresponding ideas. For instance, a cube made by an artisan is only an imperfect similitude of the Perfect Cube. At this point, Plato’s ontology meets Platonic aesthetics. For the Greeks, beauty was an almost physical property of bodies and, under the influence of the Pythagoreans, was identified with symmetry that could be represented by numbers with the help of various kinds of proportion.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Similar content being viewed by others
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2008 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
(2008). Should the Astronomer Look into the Sky?. In: A Comprehensible Universe. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-77626-0_2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-77626-0_2
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
Print ISBN: 978-3-540-77624-6
Online ISBN: 978-3-540-77626-0
eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and LawPhilosophy and Religion (R0)